


With These Broken Wings

by Crown_of_Winterthorne



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Background Ushijima/Shirabu, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, M/M, Polyamory, Season/Series 03 Spoilers, Shiratorizawa, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-08
Updated: 2018-01-08
Packaged: 2019-03-01 22:38:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13304808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crown_of_Winterthorne/pseuds/Crown_of_Winterthorne
Summary: After the Miyagi finals, Goshiki feels the weight of what it means to be the future ace. Tendou and Semi hate seeing him cry. A story of love, team and friendships among the Shiratorizawa regulars.





	With These Broken Wings

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to make Goshiki cry. I wanted Tendou to comfort him. Things happened and I have a new OT3. Please enjoy some fluff and feels.

How Goshiki managed to make himself look so small, Tendou would never understand. Nearly 182cm of long, tanned limbs were curled into a ball, glossy black hair hanging down while Goshiki cried into his knees. It was downright heartbreaking.

“Hey, kiddo.” Tendou sat down beside Goshiki as if he didn't notice the way his shoulders shook, or the soft hiccups and sniffles. 

“Ushijima-san hates me, doesn't he?” Goshiki asked, not lifting his head. He'd asked that question before, but this time Tendou thought the poor kid believed it.

“What? Nah. No way. Why would you think that?” He reached out to rub the back of Goshiki’s neck, fingers reaching up into his hair. It was as silky as it looked. “It's not your fault we lost. We were all on the court today.”

“But I let him down!” Goshiki protested, finally looking up. His eyes were swollen and red-rimmed, his face blotchy with tears. “After everything I said, I let… I let everybody down.”

His voice weakened at that last self-accusation, eyes lowering and shoulders slumping like he couldn't bear to face Tendou. 

Tendou sighed. “Tsutomu… c’mere, yeah?”

He pulled the younger boy, unresisting, into his arms. Tendou was cried out. Numb. But he felt his heart break all over again when Goshiki curled against him and mewled a watery little, “Senpai…”

“I know,” Tendou petted his hair. “I know, kiddo. Me too.”

“Satori, did you find…” Semi trailed off as he rounded the corner. There was an affectionate look in his eyes when he looked at the pair, but his voice was firm. “The bus is ready. Washijo is getting impatient.”

“What’s he going to do? Make us do even more serves?” Tendou snorted, though in truth he was a little nervous. The old man was a fucking sadist.

“Probably,” Semi said, but he sat down anyway, flanking Goshiki’s other side. He nudged the boy’s thigh with his own. “You need the practice though.”

Goshiki turned towards him, shame-faced. Tendou wanted to defend him, but Semi was already pulling him into an embrace of his own.

“Hey. Hey, no. I was just teasing, baby. If you want, I’ll work with you on your serves,” Semi promised, letting Goshiki hide against the crook of his neck. There was a gentleness there that Tendou adored. Semi didn't let anyone else see him like this.

“Thank you,” Goshiki murmured against Semi’s tan skin. It was almost as dark as his own. “I'm sorry I kept screwing up—”

Semi narrowed his eyes. “Don't. You made mistakes, but you didn't screw anything up. You were beautiful out there.”

“You thought so?” Goshiki asked, finally lifting his head. Semi wasn't one to sugarcoat things. If he said something, then it must be true.

Tendou had always liked that about him too.

“Yes, sweetheart,” Semi gave him a smile and a chaste, tender kiss that made the boy’s breath hitch. “Go wash your pretty face and we’ll run interference with Washijo.”

Goshiki blushed and bit his lip but he was smiling as he turned back towards Tendou. His own kiss was quick and poorly aimed, catching Tendou on the corner of his mouth, but it was sweet and heartfelt. Scrubbing at his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket, Goshiki stood and gave a deep bow. 

“Thank you, Semi-san! Tendou-san!”

Semi just waved him off, only allowing himself to laugh when Goshiki had darted around the corner. Tendou grinned at him.

“An indirect kiss is nice, SemiSemi, but I want the real thing.”

“Stop,” Semi rolled his eyes, but he caught Tendou by the shirt and pulled him in for a quick kiss anyway.

“You should sit with Tsutomu on the way back,” Tendou said, looping his arms around Semi’s waist. It wouldn't hurt to linger for a few moments more. “I think I should sit with Wakatoshi-kun. Remind him that some of us take letting him down harder than others.”

“Is that why Tsutomu was upset?”

“I think he feels like he fell flat on his face after all that boasting, but yeah. He thinks he let us down. And you know how he is. Wakatoshi is Tsutomu’s idol. No matter how hard he competes against him, he wants to impress Toshi.”

“Praise means more coming from the ace than your boyfriends,” Semi shrugged, getting to his feet and pulling Tendou along behind him. “It's his first big loss and none of us expected it. I get it.”

“Yeah, me too,” Tendou tangled their fingers together as they walked towards the entrance where the bus waited. He sighed. “Our last game together, Eita-kun.”

“I know. Five sets and it still wasn't long enough. Not for me,” Semi said. “I wish I'd done more.”

“Hey, you were beautiful too,” Tendou smiled. “I love watching you serve.”

“Yeah? I love seeing you get serious,” he said with a smile of his own. “That blond kid gave you a challenge, didn't he?”

Tendou curled his lip. “Yeah. Yeah, it was fun, but the little shit pissed me off.”

“I'm going to miss playing with you.”

“You still thinking about Tokyo Zokei University?”

Semi nodded. “You gonna go with me?”

“We’ll come bother Tsutomu on the weekends,” Tendou grinned. “You can photograph him, I'll draw him, and then we’ll run spiking practice until he can finally get past my blocks.”

“You have a twisted idea of fun, Satori.”

“As if you don't.”

“Fair enough.”

They let go of each other’s hands as they neared the bus and the rest of the team. Semi slipped away to tell Washijo that Goshiki was on his way while Tendou found Ushijima.

“Sit with me, Wakatoshi-kun?” he asked, picking his bag up off of the concrete. “SemiSemi likes Tsutomu better than he likes me.”

“I highly doubt that, Tendou,” Ushijima have him a bland look. To anyone else, it would have been the same expression he always wore, but Tendou knew him better than that. He saw the wry humor glinting in Ushijima’s dark eyes.

“It's okay. I like the kid better than me too,” he grinned. “C’mon. I promise not to fall asleep on you again.”

“You promise that every time,” Ushijima reminded him, picking up his own bag and climbing the steps onto the bus.

They took their seats near the back, Tendou generously letting Ushijima have the window seat. He glanced at Semi when he ushered Goshiki into a seat a few rows up, offering a smile and getting a nod in return.

“Eita and I know you and Tanji-kun are hard on him for a reason,” Tendou said quietly. He didn't want anyone else to hear, least of all Shirabu in the next seat over. Goshiki would be humiliated if he heard.

“You’re talking about Goshiki,” Ushijima clarified. He frowned at Tendou. “Is something wrong?”

“No. He still adores you. Just do me a favor and remind him why.”

“What do you mean?”

“Tsutomu puts a lot of pressure on himself and he knows you expect a lot from him. He can handle it, but he needs to know that he didn't fail today.” Tendou leaned against Ushijima’s shoulder, dropping his voice lower. “None of us like to disappoint you, Toshi. Make sure he knows you're proud of him, yeah?”

“Of course I am. He did very well today,” Ushijima said, his frown deepening.

“So  _ tell _ him that,” Tendou said. “I know you think Semi and I coddle him, and okay, yeah. Sometimes we do, but he values your opinion more than anyone else’s. Especially ours.”

Ushijima nodded. “I understand. You're telling me this as his teammate, not his boyfriend.”

“I'd never ask as that. Eita either. We promised to keep our relationship off the court,” Tendou said. “But we're still his senpai.”

“I’ll make sure he knows,” Ushijima said. “Goshiki should be proud of himself. All of our team should be.”

“We’re leaving the team in good hands,” Tendou said, nudging him. “I know speeches aren't your thing, but you’re honest. If you tell them they should be proud, they'll know it's true.”

“Thank you, Tendou,” he said, “for reminding me that sometimes I need to say these things out loud.”

“Hey, not everyone can read you as well as I do,” Tendou chuckled, closing his eyes. 

“You're going to fall asleep on me, aren't you?” Ushijima asked, a smile in his voice.

“Have to. Eita’s shoulder is occupied.”

“Satori…” Ushijima hesitated, which wasn't like him at all. Tendou looked up, waiting for him to find the words. “It's still strange to me... how the three of you work, but I'm glad you're happy.”

“Thanks, Toshi,” he smiled, putting his head back on his best friend’s shoulder. “Wake me up when we get to school.”

“Of course.”

***

Goshiki was crying again. He tried to hide it, but every so often Tendou caught the glint of a tear sliding down his cheek. This time he had a fierce smile etched onto his face that made Tendou’s heart swell with pride. He looked determined, eyes sharp as he pounded serve after serve over the net.

Semi slipped onto line beside Tendou, pausing in his serves to retie his shoe. “What on earth did you say to Wakatoshi to make him give every single one of our kouhai a pep talk?”

“I just reminded him that an ace is someone who inspires,” Tendou shrugged, catching a ball tossed to him by a first year.

Semi rolled his eyes, snorting through his nose. “You got that off of a t-shirt.”

“So? It worked, didn't it?”

“Yeah, don't look so proud of yourself,” he stood up and nudged Tendou in the ribs. They shared a smile, then Semi was striding towards Goshiki and calling his name sharply. “Make the last ten jump serves! We're going to work on your accuracy!”

“Y-Yes!” Goshiki snapped to attention. It made Tendou grin wider. The kid—no, he was a young man, wasn't he?—was really cute.

“Tendou! Stop standing there and get the ball over the net!”

With a flinch, Tendou served before Washijo could add laps to their punishment. It hit the tape and he got a round of flying receives instead.

***

By the time Washijo released the team—including those who had merely watched from the stands—to dinner, the cafeteria was closed. No one was much in the mood to lick their wounds in front of the rest of the school, so there weren't many complaints. Small groups headed to nearby convenience stores. A few who lived off campus dragged their friends home for fresh meals.

After showing and changing, the regulars all piled into Tendou and Reon’s room with enough pizza to feed an army. Or eight teenage boys.

They were too young to drink, Tendou joked, but at least they could drown their sorrows in junk food and bad movies. 

Tendou curled up on his bottom bunk bed with Semi and Goshiki, grateful that they could relax around their friends. None of them were supposed to date during volleyball season, least of all each other. It didn't matter now. Even Ushijima was finally letting his guard down around Shirabu, allowing the setter to lean against him.

It was kind of cute, the way they hesitantly touched thighs or brushed their shoulders together. 

Also cute, was the way Goshiki ended up asleep with his head in Semi’s lap before the first movie was over. Tendou grabbed an extra blanket and draped it over Goshiki before tugging Semi closer. He smiled and rested their heads together.

“Go out tomorrow?” Tendou asked, watching Semi’s graceful fingers comb through Goshiki’s silken hair. “Ice cream, maybe?”

“You always want ice cream,” Semi teased, his voice quiet. Goshiki wasn't the only one who had fallen asleep. In the bunk above, they could hear Reon snoring. On the floor, Shirabu’s head lolled against Ushijima’s shoulder and Kawanishi was sprawled face-down with a pillow. 

“Not true. Sometimes I want pudding.”

Semi made a sound that was almost too dignified to be called a snort. “We’ll let Tsutomu decide. He hasn't picked our date plans for awhile.”

Tendou thought it would be wise not to mention that Semi had revoked  _ both _ his and Goshiki’s planning privileges at the beginning of summer. Besides, he was pretty sure he could get Goshiki to agree to ice cream.

Or pudding. 

_ —END— _


End file.
